Asbestos & Mesothelioma Information for HVAC Technicians

Asbestos & Mesothelioma Information for HVAC Technicians - Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral known for its resistance to heat and fire, as well as its durability and inability to conduct electricity. All of these characteristics made asbestos an ideal material for products in and around HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems. For example, pipes and ducts around HVAC systems were commonly wrapped with asbestos insulation. When workers service HVAC systems in older homes they run the risk of being exposed to aging asbestos materials.

Asbestos & Mesothelioma Information for HVAC Technicians

If an HVAC mechanic runs into asbestos materials on a job site, they are required to stop working and a licensed asbestos abatement contractor must be brought in to remediate the asbestos contamination. Homeowners who opt to service their own HVAC systems are also at a greater risk of asbestos exposure if living in a home built before the 1990s.

In most cases, homeowners are not aware of the types of materials that are likely to contain asbestos, and this can lead to unnecessary hazardous exposure. Other family members can be put at risk under these conditions, as asbestos fibers can travel throughout the air and linger for weeks. Regardless of the mineral’s useful commercial and industrial applications, asbestos is very toxic and exposure to asbestos fibers is known to cause several forms of asbestos cancer. .

Because the body cannot easily dispose of asbestos fibers, they tend to remain in the body and cause irreversible damage. If an individual experiences repeated exposure, the fibers can build up over time, often creating a fibrous scarring of the lungs. Exposure to this toxic mineral can lead to a range of deadly diseases, such as asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma cancer. Asbestosis is a chronic and progressive lung disorder that causes shortness of breath and culminates in respiratory failure or develops into cancer. Malignant mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive form of cancer that affects the body’s mesothelial cells and has a very low rate of cure.

Diagnosed Cases

Pleural mesothelioma is the most common form of the disease, composing about 75 percent of diagnosed cases. Unfortunately, current mesothelioma treatments are not effective at curing this aggressive disease. Research is moving forward to find a cure, but funding for this little-known cancer is far from enough to support the research necessary to discover a cure.

Where to Spot and How to Avoid Asbestos – Asbestos & Mesothelioma Information for HVAC Technicians

Knowing where to find and how to spot asbestos is essential in avoiding this toxic substance. By the 1930s, the United States experienced a boom in asbestos usage, which peaked in the ’60s and ’70s and quickly dropped as evidence of its hazard to human health emerged. Asbestos was so praised that thousands upon thousands of products are estimated to have contained asbestos and approximately 3,000 products still contain asbestos.

The poisonous chemical was most commonly utilized for insulation purposes in residential, commercial and public buildings, and performed as an excellent protective covering on pipes and plumbing. The construction industry found many other uses for asbestos, as it was used in construction materials such as floor and ceiling tiles, adhesives, cements, siding, roofing, pipeline wrap, and shingles.

Since most structures built before the 1980s contain asbestos, it is important to know the common places to find asbestos in order avoid exposure and the possibility of developing mesothelioma cancer. To learn more about asbestos and the diseases that result from exposure to this toxic mineral, please visit the Mesothelioma Cancer Center online at Asbestos.com, the Web’s leading resource for all issues surrounding asbestos and its relating illnesses. The site offers information on how to avoid exposure, what to do if asbestos is in your home, as well as medical resources for those coping with asbestos-related disease.

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HVAC Random Tip Box

HVAC Tip - You can add energy savings by placing a blanket wrap insulation around your water heaters. Additionally, for electric water heaters, you can have a timer added to the power circuit to turn the water heater off in times when there is no usage. For example: Set the timer to turn the water heater off from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. Most timers can be customized and set for different times so that the water heater is turned off for most of the day and night. This, along with the insulation (which will keep the water hotter longer), can save in energy usage and your energy costs.

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